This week has been a tough one for Bachelor Nation. In case you missed it, an interview from Extra TV was released on February 9 in which former Bachelorette Rachel Lindsay asked The Bachelor host Chris Harrison about the controversy surrounding current contestant Rachael Kirkconnell. The way Chris handled the conversation was less than impressive, and he’s received tons of backlash since.
Instead of condemning the racism that Rachael is being accused of, Chris Harrison defended The Bachelor season 25 contestant, saying that he’s not the “woke police,” and suggested that if it happened in 2018, it’s not as bad as if it happened in 2021. Rachel was clearly upset by Chris’ response, but remained very poised. You can check out the full video below.
Since the interview came out, Chris Harrison has penned an apology on social media, in part writing:
"To my Bachelor Nation family–I will always own a mistake when I make one, so I am here to extend a sincere apology. I have this incredible platform to speak about love, and yesterday I took a stance on topics about which I should have been better informed…What I now realize I have done is cause harm by wrongly speaking in a manner that perpetuates racism, and for that I am deeply sorry."
You can see his
.
Of course, many feel as though the damage is already done. Members of Bachelor Nation such as
, Taylor Nolan, and a handful more have spoken out on how hurtful Chris’ words are. And that isn’t even counting the numerous fans of the show who are posting similar sentiments.
Chris Harrison to be fired petition
Viewers are now calling for Chris Harrison to be replaced, with some fans rallying for Rachel Lindsay to step in as the new Bachelor franchise host. As reported by Screen Rant, there’s even a petition that’s come out this week calling for Chris to be fired. So far, over 30,000 people have signed it and counting. You can check out the petition on Change.org here.
The petition’s title reads “Remove Chris Harrison from the Bachelor Franchise,” and part of the description is as follows:
"We must demand accountability from those in power. We start by getting this racist, misogynistic host/exec off of our television screens. All this casting for diversity is completely meaningless unless you are willing to take out the consistently problematic person on this show, the face of the show, who will never take accountability for his actions. Remove Chris Harrison from the Bachelor Franchise, or we boycott the Bachelor for good."
While Chris did post an apology for his comments about Rachael, he has yet to weigh in on the call for him to be fired. At this point, many fans believe it’s the only way for the franchise to continue. We’ll be curious to see how many viewers it loses if ABC does not take action soon.
As much as I’ve been a fan of Chris Harrison over the years, his words very much disappointed me. The demand for him to be fired is completely valid, and we stand with anyone feeling hurt by the Extra TV interview.